Florida's best new family-friendly attractions

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Orlando is a destination that never stands still and always has something novel in store for visitors old and new, and that is especially true for the next two years. From King Kong to Anna and Elsa from Frozen, and roller-coaster rides to a water park wonder, the number of new attractions waiting in the wings at Disney, Universal and SeaWorld is positively dazzling. Here’s a selection of the best:

I-Drive 360

Britain’s Merlin Entertainments set the ball rolling last month when it opened the $200 million I-Drive 360 complex, a multi-purpose entertainment centre featuring the 400ft Orlando Eye observation wheel, Madame Tussauds and SeaLife Aquarium, which effectively adds a mini-theme park of new options in the heart of International Drive.

001 407 704 6800; i-drive360.com; admission $25 (£16) for adults, $20 for children for each attraction; combination tickets available

The opening of iDrive 360 Photo: GETTY

Walt Disney World

Early next year at Walt Disney World the hit film Frozen will take over the Norway pavilion at its Epcot Theme Park, with a water ride into the animated world of Arendelle and a regal setting for Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. A character meet-and-greet is sure to draw big crowds. At the same time, the final stage of Disney Springs – an expansion of the Downtown Disney district of shops, dining and nightlife – will be completed, opening up new retail and restaurant options, including the Asian-fusion cuisine of Morimoto and the five-star STK Steakhouse.

Universal Orlando

Also next year, visitors to the Universal Orlando resort will be able to enter the Skull Kingdom: Reign of Kong attraction in the Islands of Adventure park. This will involve an intensely immersive 3-D film-and-ride sequence that takes visitors deep into the movie realm depicted by Peter Jackson in his 2005 remake of King Kong and in Skull Island (due for release in 2017). If the exterior landscaping and theming are anything to go by, this will be a blockbuster experience.

Sapphire Falls, Universal’s fifth on-site hotel, will next year add a Caribbean-inspired touch of luxury to the resort’s array of accommodations, adding 1,000 rooms. Also under construction is Universal’s first themed water park – Volcano Bay, which, when it eventually opens in 2017, promises to be a groundbreaking new version of the typical flume-ride experience.

SeaWorld

Get ready for roller-coaster magic at SeaWorld next summer in the form of the Mako, a “hypercoaster” at 200ft tall and topping 70mph. This will be Orlando’s tallest, fastest and longest ride, swooping over the park for 4,700ft and providing multiple “weightless” moments for adrenalin junkies.

Busch Gardens

In nearby Tampa, Busch Gardens will next summer celebrate the opening of Cobra’s Curse, offering another twist on the coaster theme with an 80ft vertical lift hill and cars that spin on the extended descent at up to 40mph.

Legoland Florida

Just south of Orlando, in the town of Winter Haven, the hugely successful Legoland Florida continues to expand. Following the opening in May of its Legoland Hotel, the British-owned park (another Merlin Entertainments venture) has just opened – as of June 26 – a new area of the park, Heartlake City, devoted to the Lego Friends. Look out for further developments here in 2016-17.

Kennedy Space Center

Heroes & Legends, a major exhibition featuring the US Astronaut Hall of Fame and including a state-of-the-art 3-D cinema that surrounds guests with the sights and sounds of the American space programme, will be the new star attraction in 2016 at the Kennedy Space Center on the Atlantic coast.